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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: racket · leaves · bank · capital · perch · tube · press · cold

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. press — newspapers
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. tube — a container
  10. bank — of a river
  11. press — a publisher
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. bank — for money
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bank — for money
  17. tube — the underground
  18. cold — an illness
  19. cold — not warm
  20. capital — a city
  21. perch — the fish
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. capital — money

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com